Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-07-22


Good missic, that is all right now. You
can keep Off the ghost of the dead English
woman while | kill Baas Frank But first he
must be fast asleep. Fast, fast asleep
Then slowly and with the uttcrmost caution
they once more crcpt down the hill This
time there was no light to he seen in the di.
rection of tho wagon house, and no sound to
be heard except the regular tramp of tho
sentrics But their business did not lie in the
direction of the wagon house; they left that
on their right and curved round toward the
blue gum avenue When they got nearly OPP
poste to the first tree they halted in a patch
of stones, and Jantjc went forward to recon-
noitre. Presently he returned with the intel
ligcncc that all the Beers who were with the
wagon had gone to sleep, but that Muller was
still sitting in his tent thinking. Then they
crept on, perfectly sure that if they were not
heard they would not DO seen, curtained
they were by the dense mist and darkness
till at length they reached tho bole of the
first big gum tree Five PAGES from this tree
Frank Muller's tent was pitched, Ii had
light in it which caused the wet tent to
glow in the mist, as though it had
been rubbed with phosphorus, and
on this lurid canvas tho shadow of
Frank Muller was gigantically limned. He
reflection of his every feature and even Of his
expression upon the screen before them. The
attitude in which he was seated was his favor
lite one when he was plunged in thought, his
hands resting on his knees and his gaze fixed
on vacancy. He was thinking of his triumph,
and of all that he had gone through to win it
and of all that it would bring him. He held
the trump cards now, and the game was in
his own hand. He had triumphed, and yet
over BIN hung the shadow of that curse that
dogs the presence of our accomplished desires.
Too often, even with the innocent, does the
seed of our destruction Turk in the rich bios
som of our hopes, and much more is this so
with the guilty. Somehow this thought was
present in his mind tonight, and in a rough,
half educated way he grasped its truth. Once
more the saying of the old Bocr general rose
in his min 81 believe that there is a Cod
| believe that God sets limit to a mans
doings. If he is going too tar, God kills
him."
What dreadful thing it would be if the
old fool were right after all! Surprising that
there were God, aud God were TO kill him
tonight, and hurry Off his soul, if he had one,
to some dim place of unending fcarl All his
supcrstitions awokc at the thought, and he
shivered so violently that the shadow of the
form upon the canvas to tremble up and
down.
Then, rising with an angry curse, he hastily
threw off his outer clothing, and having
turned down but not extinguished the rough
paraflne lamp, flung himself upon the little
camp bedstead which creaked and groaned
beneath his weight like thing in pain.
Then came silence, only broken by the drip
drip of the rain from the gum leaves over
head and the rafting of the boughs whenever
breath of air stirred them. 1t was an eerie
and depressing night, night that might well
have tried the nerves of any strong man who
wet through and worn out had been obliged
| to crouch upon the open and endure it. How
much moro awful was it then to the unfortu-
nate woman who, half broken hearted, fever
stricken and well nigh crazed with suffering
of mind and body, waited in it to see murder
done. Slowly the minutes passed, and at
every raindrop or rustic of Dough her
guilty conscience summoned up a host of
fears. But y the mere power of her will she
kept them down. She would so through with
it. Yes, she would go through with it, Surely
he must be asleep by now!
The; GREET IN To the tent and placed Their
ears withn two iucGc1 of his head Yes, he
was asleep; the sound of his breathing rose
and fell with the regularity of an infants.
jess 'u'licu rouiii ana toucneu her COM
P'i'"" u!'oil 'ne sii""'''er' ne qua hoO lhoN''
hut She 1clt that his arm was shaking.
-,3", sue whispered,
sun ne hu''s o'ch' III was evident 10 h'r
th'V tne i"lS waiting h''' taken 'he courage
ON VI NM
be man. she whispered again. so low
.nnV 'ne S"uiioi scarcely reached ms ears al
lhou9h her Ups were almost touchlnS them,
60 ana hlhu you striKe nome!
Then at last she heard him softly draw the
great knife from the sheath, and in another
second he had glided from Aer side. Pres
emily she saw the line OF light that cut out
upon the darkness trough the opening OF the
tent broaden htIc, and by that she knew
lhat ne was creeping III upon ms dreadful
er'".u inei, S'p turi'e1t her mead ana put
her myers III het eals but even oshe could
see long Inc ol shaiow CraFcIlhS across the
sklrt Oh tne tent 90 she smut her eyes also
ana waited, SICK at heart, Tor she did not
u